Carpet-stretcher



(No Modei.)

W. H.. PEEPLYES-- CARPET STRETUHEB No. 554,789. Patented Peb'. 18,- 1896.

lVlNGRAVE H. PEEPLES, OE

ATnNr irren..

BOUND BROOK, NEW JERSEY.

CARPET-STRETCHER.

SPECIFCATIQN forming part of Letters Patent No. 554,789, dated February 18, 1896.

i Application 515i Apiii 1o, 1895.

To @ZZ whom, t may concern:

Be it known that I, WINGRAvE H. PEEPLES, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bound Brook, in the county of Somerset and State of New Jersey, have invented new and useful Improvements in Oarpet-Stretchers, of which the following is a specication.

My invention relates to an improved carpetstretcher, and has for its object to provide a light, strong and inexpensive device for i stretching carpets that shall be compact and occupy but small space, thus rendering it extremely portable, that shall be capable of being readily applied and operated to stretch the carpet taut, that shall yield under excessive strain to prevent injury to the carpet or danger of breaking the stretcher, and that shall be easily and readily removable from under the 'carpet after the latter has been stretched.

To these ends my invention consists in a carpet-stretcher formed from a curved piece of resilient sheet metal provided at its opposite ends with serrations or teeth adapted to respectively engage the iioor and the under side of the carpet, and operating, when force is applied thereto in the manner hereinafter described, to stretch the carpet with a unform and strong strain, yet with a yielding tension when the strain becomes excessive.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, Figure l is a perspective view of my improved carpet-stretcher, and Eig. 2 is a side elevation illustrating the device in operative position.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral l indicates my improved carpet-stretcher, which consists of a rectangular plate of resilient sheet metal, which is bowed or curved midway between its ends, as shown at 2, the ends extending outwardly from said bowed portion and provided with a series of serrations,which present their active points 3 in line substantially at right angles to a line drawn vertically through the bowed portion, the serrated teeth lying in substantially the same plane, whereby, when the stretcher rests squarely on the floor, the teeth will lie flat thereon and out of engagement therewith and with the carpet.

The stretcher is used in the following manner: The carpet having been tacked to the floor at one of its sides in the usual manner, the

seria No. 545,184. (No moaei.)

stretcher is slipped under the carpet near its other edge and turned to an approximately upright position, so that the teeth 3 of one of its ends will engage the floor, while the teeth at the other end will engage the under side of the carpet, the convex side of the stretcher being disposed toward The edge of the carpet that has been previously tacked to the fioor. Force is now applied to vibrate the stretcher toward the side of the floor to which the carpet is to be tacked, and carries with it the carpet, stretching it smoothly and evenly over the floor with the exertion of but a slight amount of force upon the part of the operator, the stretcher operating as a lever the fulcrum of which is its lower end in engagement with the iioor. The stretcher may be vibrated by the hand of the operator or it may be vibrated by placing the foot thereagainst. When the lever has been forced from its approximately vertical position to nearly a horizontal position, the carpet is then tacked at its free edge to the iioor, upon which the stretcher, being relieved from the strain of the carpet, will rest squarely and iiat upon the iioor, when the teeth will no longer be in engagement with either the iioor or carpet and maybe readily slipped from under the latter. By bowing or curving the steel plate midway between its imparted to the device but the resiliency of the plate is greatly augmented, and thus, should excessive strain be exerted upon the carpet in the operation of stretching the latter, the yielding of the device will not only prevent the carpet from being unduly stretched and Warped but will operate to give warning to the operator to cease stretching the carpet further.

- By causing the teeth at the opposite ends of the stretcher to lie in the same plane they willbe out of engagement with the lioor and the carpet when the latter has been tacked down, permitting the stretcher to be removed with ease and rapidity.

is extremely light, strong, compact and durable and may be manufactured at a small cost. Having described my invention, what I claim is- The herein-described new article of manufacture, consisting of a carpet-stretcher comends, as shown, not only is increased strength The device constructed as above described roo posed of :t rectangular plate of resilient metal which is bowed et a point interlfnediate its ends, seid ends extending outwardly from the bowed portion and provided with a series of perforations which present their active points in a plane substantially at right angles to a line drawn vertically through the bowed por tion, said :ietive points, en the opposite ends of the plate, lying in the saine pla-ne, whereby the plate will yield under excessive strain to prevent the carpet from being unduly stretched and warped :md will warn the oper- :ttor to cease stretching the Carpet further, und

whereby, when the stretcher rests squarely upon the floor after the carpet has been 15 stretched, the active points 3 will lie flat upon the floor and out of engagement therewith and with the carpet.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hund sind affixed my senil in presence of 2o two subscribing witnesses.

WINGRAVVE ll. lEElLHS. fitnesses JAMES MCDONALD, R. 1I. BROKAW. 

